Based on the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation’s most recent assessment of the average rent for a Vancouver two-bedroom apartment — $1,550 per month — the hike would equate to an extra $837 per year.

But Sydney Ball with the Vancouver Tenants Union (VTU) said tenants don’t have time to wait for action on rent hikes, arguing that people on fixed incomes simply don’t have the extra money to pay a higher rent.

“I think now is the time for action from the B.C. government if they want to prove that they actually understand the housing crisis is a crisis for tenants and the homeless, and not a crisis for property owners and landlords,” she said.

“Something like the 4.5 per cent increase is so obviously wrong that it shouldn’t be hard for them to take action immediately.”